Burton Beach Invitational 2024

As the spring racing season kicks off with the Burton Beach Invitational, ORU's junior rowing teams have demonstrated their talent and determination on the water. From our U15 and novice athletes to our seasoned U19 competitors, each team has showcased their skills and achieved remarkable success at recent regattas.

U15 and Novice Athletes Shine:

Our U15 and novice athletes launched into their first spring season regatta with boundless enthusiasm and determination. It's truly inspiring to witness these young competitors embrace the challenges of the short course season with such eagerness. With two first-place medals proudly earned, we eagerly anticipate their continued success as the season progresses.

🥇MU15 4x+: P. Roemer, R. Daniels, L. Pechette, L. Schoenen, c: N. Fertig

🥇MU15 2x: R. Daniels, L. Pechette

U16 and U17 Athletes Excel:

At the Burton Beach Invitational, our U16 and U17 athletes showcased their prowess on the water with remarkable performances. Securing first place in five races and adding another third-place finish, our men's and women's U16 and U17 rowers truly excelled on the water, setting a high standard for the season ahead.

🥇MU17 4x: A. Hsu-Chen, M. Klain, O. Bell, R. Maher

🥇MU17 2x: A. Hsu-Chen, R. Maher

🥇MU17 1x: Ronan Maher

🥇MU16 4x+: A. Hsu-Chen, O. Bell, T. Papavasiliou, K. Hu, c: K. Brunkow

🥇WU16 2x: L. Carambot, L. Gutierrez

🥉WU17 4x: L. Carambot, A. Smith, L. Gutierrez, A. Schoenen

U19 Dominance at Burton Beach Invitational:

Our U19 athletes showcased their skills and determination at the Burton Beach Invitational, securing an impressive array of victories. With ORU's largest representation by age group, our U19 men's and women's teams dominated the competition with nine first-place finishes, along with two second and third-place victories, respectively.

🥇MU19 4x: A. Krain, O. Geiger, A. Harris, M. Lee

🥇WU19 4x: Z. Young, C. Sopko, F. Little, K. Whildin

🥇MU19 4+: D. Koski, L. Andersen, A. Cox, E. Pero, c: K. Whildin

🥇WU19 4+: L. Metcalf, I. Jurinka, G. McCoy, N. Nechiporuk, c: N. Fertig

🥇MU19 2x: A. Krain, O. Geiger

🥇WU19 2x: Z. Young, K. Whildin

🥇WU19 2-: G. McCoy, N. Nechiporuk

🥇MU19 2-: D. Koski, L. Andersen

🥇WU19 1x: Kalista Whildin

🥈WU19 2x: C. Sopko, F. Little

🥈WU19 2-: L. Metcalf, I. Jurinka

🥉MU19 4+: O. Morgan, G. Freeman, H. Bolch, K. Young, J. Kearns

🥉WU19 4+: S. Kokoori, T. Chin, L. Hansen, J. Kearns, L. Schoenen

From the youngest novices to our seasoned U19 competitors, each athlete has contributed to ORU's success on the water, demonstrating their dedication, skill, and determination. As the spring racing season unfolds, we look forward to witnessing their continued growth and achievements.

Join the ORU Community: Interested in joining our rowing community? Visit our website to learn more about our programs and how you can become a part of our team.

Stay Connected: Follow us on social media for updates, race results, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of life on the water.

WU19 4x - Henley Royal Regatta ‘23

Thank you Junior Rowing News for paying attention to our club all the way over in Portland, Oregon.

After winning every single event they entered in 2022 & 2023 ( 1x’s 2x’s , 2-, 4x’s and even 8+) in the USA, these four girls from Oregon Rowing Unlimited are chasing their dream of competing in the Henley Royal Regatta 2023 in London, England. It is one of the most prestigious regattas in the world after the Olympic Games and the World championships. They are competing in the Daimond Jubilee watch here live and tape delayed.

Best of luck to Lauren, Zola, Claire, Kali, and coach Plamen Petrov!

US ROWING YOUTH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 2023

12 boats represented ORU at the US Rowing Youth National Championship in Sarasota, Florida this June. Nine boats represented ORU in the prestigious A & B finals and 2 ORU crews took home the title of 2023 US National Champion.

Congratulations to our Womens Youth 4x - great work Lauren, Zola, Claire, and Kali!

Congratulations to our Open Gender Youth 2x - great work Conrad and Tesla.

THE SCULLERS HEAD OF THE WILLAMETTE ONLY CAME TOGETHER IN SEPTEMBER

Oregon Rowing Unlimited was riding a wave of momentum in early March.

A much-anticipated spring season was off to a strong start at a regatta in British Columbia, several of its junior rowers were eyeing a return trip to the national championships, and its membership was nearing a point where a waiting list was considered.

We all know the next twist.

Instead of putting in five hard workouts a week on the water, Will Hathaway, Lauren Garrett and their teammates spent the spring trying to stay in shape with home workouts and cross training. Modified training on the Willamette River resumed in May, which was nice.

But it wasn't until Oct. 3 that they could experience competition again.

Dubbed the Scullers Head of the Willamette, an invitation-only competition staged by ORU included 58 rowers representing six clubs.

Each participant rowed a single scull over a 4-kilometer course. Hathaway, a junior at Cleveland High, and Garrett, a sophomore at West Linn High, each had the fastest time for their division.

"It was really exciting," Garrett said. "We've been training so long and had nothing to race for."

For more click here

Lauren garrett

Lauren garrett

courtesy photo: rebecca garrett

Will hathawaycourtesy photo: kym mccornack

Will hathaway

courtesy photo: kym mccornack

OUR BOAT NAMING CEREMONY

Last February, when social gatherings were still commonplace and before Covid-19 restrictions closed many local businesses, ORU held its second annual fundraising auction at the Lake Theater & Café in Lake Oswego. Among the most popular items that evening was an opportunity to choose a name for one of ORU’s new Hudson double sculls.

The winning bid came from the families of Gus Altucher and Simon Hatcher, two ORU athletes who together won gold at the 2019 Northwest Youth Championships (in both the Men’s Youth Pair and the Men’s Youth Double Sculls) and bronze at the 2019 Youth National Championships in the Men’s Youth Double Sculls.

On a recent Saturday, with full social distancing protocols in place, ORU officially christened the boat with several families who watched the ceremony and heard the story of how Gus and Simon chose the name. Gus told the story, while Simon participated via FaceTime from Vermont: 

“In 2019, Simon and I were at the Youth Regional Challenge in Florida, representing the Northwest. When you are there, the race organizers provide a boat for you, so you don’t have to transport your boat from wherever you’re from… We ended up racing in a Hudson, it was a 2013, really nice, it was a beautiful boat, we were happy to row it.So getting ready for the race, we’re really tense as always…it’s a really intense start. The official calls the race start…it’s going really well. About 500 meters in were starting to gain some open water. About 750 meters in, all of the sudden, my shoe pops off the boat. It’s not like my foot came out of the foot stretcher; the entire shoe came entirely off the foot plate. And we still have 1,250 more meters to go! I’m pulling myself up with my other foot, and trying to get my foot to stay on the foot stretcher somehow.We did end up winning the race, but afterwards, we were not sure what to do with this shoe. The coach cut it out of the boat and gave it to us. And just totally by chance while were there, a legendary rower named Clark Dean happened to be there, too, helping with his home club. He’s a collegiate rower, and seriously it’s hard to express how much of an idol he is for U19 rowers. He’s legendary. So naturally Simon and I wanted to get his autograph. But we realized didn’t really have anything for him to sign. So we went up to him with the shoe from the boat. And now we have a shoe signed by Clark Dean. And so in honor of that event, we decided to name the boat “Signed Shoe.””

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From the Oregon Rowing Unlimited Youth, Thank you!

ORU offers a very sincere THANK YOU to the following people in the great State of Oregon for each of their contributions to allow the youth to return to water practices on the Willamette River in Portland during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

·         Jason Miner, Natural Resources Policy Director, Office of Governor Kate Brown – for the tireless long weekend he spent accepting, reviewing and approving the ORU COVID-19 youth water practice proposal and clarifying access to the Oaks Park Boathouse as a tenant.

·         Brandon Roben, CEO, Oaks Amusement Park – for his openness, support and willingness to reopen the boathouse.

·         Sam Taylor, Oaks Park Community Boathouse Manager – for his thoroughness in logistics to ensure all bases were covered and that the EO 20-12 clarification could apply to all boathouse tenants.

·         Laura Jackson, Oaks Park Community Boathouse President – for her inter-tenant coordination efforts.

·         Rachel Kelley, Sales Executive, AssuredPartners Inc. – for the patience, professionalism and extra time she took to clearly explain the insurance coverages included in the standard USRowing policy for all interested parties.

·         Susan Smith, Chief Domestic Officer and interim CEO, USRowing – for her tenacity and fortitude to quickly obtain outstanding insurance questions to resolution.

·         Honorable Senator Kathleen Taylor, Oregon State Senate – for her moral support and her staff’s direction on best resolution of the clarification request.

·         Barb Trammell, CEO, Oregon Golf Association – for her guidance on the clarification request approach that was ultimately successful.

·         Leah Horner and other State of Oregon staff of the Governor’s Office – for the behind the scenes work that we will never know about that helped to advance the clarification request through the office to ultimate approval.

·         Nadia Petrova and Plamen Petrov, ORU Coaches – for creative thinking and development of the plan which was ultimately successful in meeting the COVID-19 distancing and sanitization requirements of EO 20-12 and OHA and for their continued tireless work to now provide two practices per day, six days per week to allow all youth team members a chance to row every week.

·         Brad Hathaway, ORU Treasurer and the Finance Committee – for their flexibility and extra effort to adapt the billing process to the ever-changing situation and maintain budgetary/forecast updates for the ORU Board.

·         Christopher Redmond, ORU Secretary – for his effort to spearhead the clarification request process to completion.

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The Row Must Go On

Joining the ORU juniors team at the America Lake Regatta, as an experienced rower or as a novice rower, offered an amazing time, full with valuable experiences for everyone to learn and great opportunities to hone our racing skills. We had fantastic results with 12 out of 19 boats earning medals.

ORU rowing roots run deep, and our passion for the sport continues to thrive. Congratulations, all!

Photographs courtesy of Jane Savage

Row It Like You Stole It

Tail of the Lake has been one of our favorite fall regattas. We love it because of its location and perfect organization. ORU brought the heat to Seattle and showed some great results.

Congratulations to Hannah and Yago Marin for having their first novice races of the season. Well done!

Golden triumphs for our Men's Jr 2x (Ivan and Will), our Womens 4x (Sarah, Sophia, Mika and Milla) and our Women's Novice 4x+ (Gabby, Annie, Kalista, Hannah and Roby (c)).

Sarah and Milla had a really fantastic race in a double. They placed 2nd out of 22 boats in their event with the time of 17:08.3.

Our Mens quadruple scull with Gus, Max Z., Ian and Ivan finished 2nd with 13:42.

Another silver for our Mens U17 8+. Congratulations to Gabriel, Lucas, Max S., Owen, Keenen, Adley, Yago, Michael, and Andrew in the stroke seat and their coxswain Jordan Bancroft.

Will, Leeland, Lucas and Henry had a very strong race and finished 3rd in the Mens U17 4x event.

Some incredibly tough races, but what a fantastic day of rowing against the best PNW crews. Well done everyone!

photographs courtesy of Jane Savage and Carl Mandac

CONGRATULATIONS

CONGRATULATIONS to Gus Altucher from ORU-PDX and teammates Austin Lai (CA), Malakai Leon (FL) and Theory Millar (CA) on 15th in the World in the Men’s 4x at the 2019 World Rowing Junior Championships in Tokyo, Japan. We are excited to see whats next for all of you!

GOOD LUCK TO GUS ALTUCHER (ORU) AND EVERYONE RACING AT THE 2019 WORLD ROWING JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS IN TOKYO, JAPAN

Gus Altucher from ORU-PDX and teammates Austin Lai (CA), Malakai Leon (FL) and Theory Millar (CA) earned spots on the 2019 U19 National Team by winning the Men's U19 4x event at CanAmMex. They will represent Team USA at this year's World Rowing Junior Championships August 7-11 in Tokyo, Japan. http://www.usrowing.org/…/usrowing-names-2019-under-19-nat…/


WAY TO GO, ALEX!!!

Alex Edwards was one of 52 youth athletes selected from the Northwest region to take part in the new USRowing U19 Olympic Development Program (ODP) camp this summer. The Northwest team had 3 weeks of intensive training in Ashland, Oregon, where they focused on both sculling and sweep development and attended seminars on topics such as mental toughness, nutrition, race preparation, and rowing in college. The team then traveled to Sarasota, FL. for a week to compete against the other five regions in the inaugural "ODP Summer Cup.” Alex raced in three events, winning bronze in the U18 W4+ B. She also raced in the U18 W8+ and the U17 W4x.


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FANTASTIC RACING AT THE 2019 US ROWING YOUTH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN SARASOTA, FLORIDA

Congratulations for an impressive performance by ORU Juniors at this years Youth Nationals. The Gus-Simon double finished 3rd in the nation, and the Ivan-Will lightweight double finished 5th in the nation. This is an impressive achievement - for the first time in the history of ORU-PDX, all Youth Nationals qualifying boats reached Final A! Congratulations to the athletes and the coaches for a stunning performance!

ANOTHER GREAT RACING AT THE 2019 COVERED BRIDGE REGATTA

A fantastic weekend in Eugene. The varsity and novice boys and girls all continued their season at the 2019 Covered Bridge Regatta in Eugene, OR. It was a great weekend for racing. Thanks to all the parents who contributed food and helped make this event a success.

Gus, Simon, Ivan, and Will won gold medals in the single scull events. Beside single scull, Gus and his partner Simon also raced in a double and a pair, winning gold medals in both events. Brilliant success!!! In a dominating performance, Ivan and Will claimed the gold medal in the Mens JV 2x event.

Congratulations to Tom and Joe for winning bronze medal in the Mens JR JV 2x event, and to Adrian and Ian who placed third in the Mens JR Varsity 2x event. Our Womens Jr Varsity 4x quadruple scull (Ashley, Cleo, Ali, and Ella) had a great race and also finished third. Well done everyone!

Photos courtesy of Jane Savage

WAY TO GO ORU!

Another NW Ergomania in the books for Team ORU ! The participating ORU rowers have been working hard, practicing and perfecting their skills in preparation for this event for weeks. Congratulations to Gus Altucher for winning second place in the Men’s Junior event. Well done everyone!

Spring 2024 Regatta Schedule

March 17 Burton Beach Invitational Regatta Jensen Point Park (Vashon Island, WA) — 2k/Sprint Juniors

April 13-14 Covered Bridge Regatta Dexter Lake (Eugene, OR) — 2k/Sprint Juniors

April 26-28 Brentwood Regatta Brentwood College (Mill Bay, CA) — 1500m/Sprint Juniors (selected rowers)

May 17-19 USRowing Northwest Youth Championships Vancouver Lake (Vancouver, WA) — 2k/Sprint Juniors (Varsity & Select Novice)

June 6-9 USRowing Youth National Championships Sarasota-Bradenton, FL (Sarasota, FL) — 2k/Sprint Juniors